Arrest warrant issued for Braintree fire lieutenant

Thursday

WHITMAN— An arrest warrant has been issued for a Braintree fire lieutenant accused of threatening to kill a woman.

Lt. Kevin R. MacAleese, 53, was charged with threatening to commit a crime stemming from an incident in Whitman last month.

Whitman police said that on Dec. 13 they were called by a woman who told them MacAleese called her and said he was coming to her house to assault her, according to a report filed with Brockton District Court. The woman told police that MacAleese had threatened to "kill her" and "bury her."

Police arrived to the home and said the woman was on the phone with MacAleese who was threatening to beat up her husband. The woman told police that MacAleese was a former romantic partner, but that they had remained friends after the relationship ended. Police said they heard MacAleese on the phone saying he didn't care if police shot him.

The woman told police that MacAleese had become increasingly aggressive toward her in the past few months. While speaking with the woman, a police officer saw MacAleese drive by the Jenkins Avenue home, got into his cruiser and pulled him over.

Police said MacAleese was put in handcuffs and admitted to threatening the woman, but was vague about what the threats were. Police said that based upon the homicidal and suicidal statements, MacAleese would be involuntarily committed to a hospital for a mental health evaluation. Police said that they took MacAleese to Signature Hospital in Brockton and served him with an emergency restraining order to stay away from the woman.

Beth Stone, spokeswoman for the Plymouth County District Attorney's office, said that when MacAleese is arrested or turns himself in, the Cape and Islands district attorney's office would handle the case to avoid a conflict. She did not specify the nature of the conflict.

MacAleese is on administrative leave, a statement released by the town's human resources director said.